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Proposal includes plans for bringing high-speed internet to all U.S. homes and student-loan relief aimed at entrepreneurs

By Colleen McCain Nelson
June 28, 2016 6:00 a.m. ET
106 COMMENTS

Democrat Hillary Clinton will release a wide-ranging “tech and innovation agenda” Tuesday, detailing plans to connect every household to high-speed internet and to develop the next generation of entrepreneurs.

The presumptive Democratic nominee’s technology platform will include an ambitious goal of bringing broadband to all U.S. homes by 2020, according to a Clinton campaign aide. Mrs. Clinton also will call for a range of upgrades to the nation’s technology infrastructure, including connecting more public destinations such as airports and train stations to the internet and clearing the way for them to offer free Wi-Fi.

The campaign has not provided details about how these initiatives would be funded.

Mrs. Clinton also plans to lay out a new student-loan relief plan aimed at supporting young entrepreneurs and innovators, the campaign aide said. The former secretary of state would allow many young people starting new ventures to defer payments on their student loans for up to three years, easing a financial burden during the startup phase of their business.

Her plan also would forgive up to $17,500 in student loans for many innovators who launch businesses in struggling communities or develop social enterprises that deliver a measurable benefit.

Mrs. Clinton plans to unveil her tech agenda Tuesday in Denver, where she will tour a workforce training facility and small-business incubator. Later in the day, she will meet with digital content creators in Los Angeles.

President Barack Obama has made closing the digital divide a priority during his administration. He pledged to connect 99% of American students to high-speed internet in their schools by 2018, and last year, he launched a pilot program to bring broadband to low-income households.

Mrs. Clinton would go further with a plan to connect every household and to provide all students with access to computer-science education by the time they graduate. Her plan also calls for training 50,000 new computer-science education teachers during the next decade.

Tuesday’s rollout is the latest in a long list of policy proposals Mrs. Clinton has unveiled. She has released detailed plans for issues ranging from protecting voting rights to preventing sexual assaults on campuses, contrasting her itemized agenda with Donald Trump’s plans.

The presumptive Republican nominee has said that voters don’t care about his lack of policy specifics. Mrs. Clinton tells supporters that she has an old-fashioned idea that “if you’re running for president, you should say what you want to do and how you will get it done. “